Drier and condenser.



0. S. SLEEPER.

DRIER AND CONDBNSER.

APPLICATION IILBD JULY 14, 1909.

Patented May 9, 1911.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

1N wk. www

0. S. SLBEPER.

DRIER AND CONDENSER.

APPLICATION rILnD JULY 14, 1009.

Patented May 9, 1911.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

OLIVER S. SLEEPER, OF BUFFALO, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO BUFFALO FOUNDRY .AND MACHINE COMPANY, 0F BUFFALO, NEW YORK, .A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

DRIER AND CONDENSER.

ITo all whom 'it may' concern:

ous other'places where a small drier and condenser is required for testing comparatively small quantities of liquids or plastic material.

Itis the object of this invention to proi duce a drier and condenser for this purpose tion of the condenser and el'ectin denser.

which is very simple, convenient and compact in construction, which permits of readily drying various substances to be tested under the application of heat and vacuum, which permits of conveniently observing the operathe recovery of the condensation, and in which all of the parts are readily accessible for cleaning, inspection and repairs.

In the accompanying drawings consisting of 2 sheets: Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal section of my improved drier and con- Fig. 2 1s a vertical sectionl taken in line 2 2, Fig. 1, looking forwardly. Figs. 3 and 4 are horizontal sections taken in t-he correspondin ly numbered lines in Fig. 1. Fig. 5 is a ragmentary side elevation of the shell of the drier, the door for closing the inlet of the drying chamber and one of the clamping levers or hooks for holding the door in closed position.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views.

In its general organization my improved drierand condenser comprises an upper section Afor head yl which embodies the appa-4 ratus whereby the material to be tested is dried, an. intermediate section or column 2 `which carries the head at it-s upper end and vforms part of the condenser whereby the vapors are condensed, and a base 3 which supports the column at its lower end and i which is provided with means for collecting and drawing ofi' the liquid yielded by the condenser.

The upper section or head of the apparatus comprises a shell which contains the Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed July 14, 1909.

Patented May 9, 1911.

Serial No. 507,515.

drying chamber 4; and which has a horizontal top 5 and bottom 6, upright side walls 7 an upright rear wall 8, an inlet or opening 9 at its front end through which the material to be dried and tested is introduced into the drying chamber, and a vapor outlet 10 which is arranged centrally in the upper rear wall at the top thereof and throii h which the vapors are withdrawn from t e drying chamber by an exhausting device wliich`operates to produce a partial vacuum in thel drying chamber and thus permit the drying of the material to be effected more expeditiously and at a-lower temperature.

During the drying operation, the inlet of the drying ,chamber is closed by a door or cover 11, a tight joint being produced between the door and the chamber by means of a packing or gasket 12 of rubber or other elastic material arranged in a groove in the face of the door and engaging with theface 13 ofthe drying chamber around the inlet thereof. This door is preferably pivoted at its lower edge to the shell below the inlet of the chamber by means of va horizontal rod or pintle 1.4 passing transversely through corresponding perforated ears 15, 16 on the adjacent edges of the door and shell, this pivotal connection being loosely constructed so as to permit the dpor not only to swing ver` 85 tically into its open and closed positions but also'to move in a substantially straight line( toward and from'the face 18 of the drying chamber to permit the packing of the door to bear uniformly against said face and lower end toward its upper end, as shown in Fig. l, whereby the door will han in a pendent open osition when swung ownwardly, but when the same is swung upwardly into its closed osition against the face of the drying chain er it will be inclined rearwardly andthus be held in its closed position by gravity. For the purpose of tightening the cover against the inlet of the drying chamber and compressin the packing between the same for pro ucing an air s ofthe door through which the pivot 95 tight joint after the material has been introduced into the drying chamber, a clamping device is provided which thus .secures the door and which alsoautomatically releases itself from the door when the latter is drawn more tightly toward the shell or drying chamber upon producing a vacuum therein. The preferred means for this purpose shown in the drawings consists of two vertically swinging clamping levers or hooks 18 which are pivoted at theirfrear ends toV opposite sides of the drier shell and which are provided at their front ends with upwardly projecting bills 19 adapted to engage with thefront sides of lugsor shoulders 20 projecting laterally from opposite lateral edges of the door. The operative rear faces of the billsl of these hooks are made slightly eccentric relative to the pivots of these hooks so that the same operate as wedges or camsl upon engaging with the lugs of thedoor and force the latter toward the face of the drying chamber. At their front ends these clamping hooks are provided with handles 21 for manipulating the same. As the exhaustin device produces a partial vacuum in the rying chamber to promote the drying of the material therein, the door is drawn toward the face of the shell around the inlet of the drying chamber to a' greater extent than -was imparted to it by the action of the cam orwedge faces of the clamping hooks. When this occurs, the hold of the clamping levers or hooks on the shoulders or lugs of 'the door is lost causing these hooks to drop 4by gravity out of engagement from the lugs of the door. Thereafter the door is held air tight inl its closed position by atmospheric pressure only but as the'same is no 'longer engaged by the clamping leversw or hooks, it is free to fly open and automatically-relieve the drying chamber if the pressure within the latter exceeds 4the external atmospheric pressure and thereby prevent injuryl to the apparatus. This preponderance of the internal pressure within the drying chamber over the atmospheric pressure is liable to occur when the material being dried generates more vapor than', the condenser will accommodate and also when drying materials which are liable to explode during the l drying operation, suchas gun powder. indows are provided or the operations inside ofthe drying chamber to be observed from `the exterior. For this purpose two windows are preferablyv arranged side by side in the door of the drying chamber, each window comprising a circular glass pane 22l arranged in a cqrrespondingly shaped opening in the door and bearing with its outer side against an internal annular flange or shoulder 23 around the outer'end of said opening and an external threaded clamping screw ring 24 engaging with the internally threaded inner part of said opening and heating medium of anysuitable character may be conducted for heating the material within the drying chamber. Arranged lengthwise and centrally in this heating chamber is a partition which has an Lipper section 26 extending from the rear wall of the jacket forwardly between the top of the shell` and the top of the jacket and terminating short of the .front ends of these parts, a lower section 27 extending from the rear `Wall of the, jacket forwardly between the bottom of the drying chamber and the lower side of the jacket and terminating short of the front ends of these parts, and an upright rear section 28 which extends vertically between the rear walls of the drying chamber and the jacket and4 c onnects with the rear ends of the upper and lower partition sections. On diagonally opposite corners of the rear wall of the heating acketl the same is provided with an upper nipple 29 and a'` lower nipple 30 one of which is adapted to serve as an inlet for the live heating agent which 'is to be Vconducted into the heating chamber While, the other serves as an outlet for the dead or spent heating agent after the same has given olf its heat for raising. 'thea temperature in the drying chamber.

This heating agent may. be steam, hot-Water, hot air, a gas liame or the like. When steam is utilized as' the heating medium,

the same 'is admitted through the upper nipple 29 and after spending itself within the heat chamber for raising `the temperature within-the drying chamber, the same is dis,- charged through the lowera nipple 30,' butwhen hotvwate'r or similar medium is utilized asthe heating agent, the same is admitted into the heating chamber through the lower nipple and discharged through the upper nipple. As the steam enters the upper nipple, it divides, one part passing vforwardly through the upper-'ipart of the heatingfchamber on one side-of the upper partition section, thence rearwardly on the opposite side of the same partition section, and thence downwardly on the correspond` ingside of the upright partition section to thelower nipple, while the other part of the steam passes downwardly from the upper nipple through the vertical part of the heating lchamber on the corresponding side Lof iio the vertical partition section, thencet for wardly throughthe lower part of the heat` ing chamber on the corresponding side of the lower partition section, and thence forwardly through the lower part of the heat- 'of this chamber, thence forwardly ing chamber on the opposite side of the lower partition section tothe lower nipple. By this means, the heating medium is compelled to take a circuitous course or path through the heating chamber and distribute itself uniformly over the top, bottom and rear side of the drying chamber and exert the maximum heating effect upon the material within the drying chamber before it can escape. Vhen using hot water or hot air as the heating agent which is admitted through the lower nipple 30, the same distributes itself in like manner over the shell of the drying chamber but in a reverse direction before it can escape through the upper nipple.

lVhen the steam, hot water, hot air or the like are not available for circulating heat through the heating jacket, the same may be heated by admitting the flame of a gas burner through an opening 3l into the lower part of the heating jacket at the front end thereof, this llame passing rearwardly through the lower part of the heating chamber, thence upwardly through the rear part through the upper part of this chamber on opposite sides of the partition between these parts. and thence upwardly through an outlet opening 32 in the top of the upper part of the heating jacket at the front end thereof. which outlet may be connected by a flue or otherwise with a chimney so as to carry olf the products of combustion. The lower and upper openings 81, 32 are closed by plates or covers 33. 34, secured thereto by screws 35 or otherwise when these openings are not utilized and the heating of the drying chamber is effected by the circulation of steam, hot water or the like through the heating chamber.

The vapors drawn olf through the outlet of the drying chamber are conducted centrally to the underside of the heating jacket by a vapor outlet conduit 36 which extends from said vapor outlet 10 downwardly between the rear walls of the drying chamber and heating chamber, thence forwardly between the bottoms of the drying and heating chambers, and thence downwardly through the bottom of the jacket, this conduit eing preferably formed in the rear and lower sections of the partition which divides the heating chamber lengthwise, as shown in Figs. l, 2 and 4.l

The column which supports the -head containing'the drying ap aratus comprises a hollow upright cylindrical post or shell 37, a. cap 38 screwed on the upper end of the tubular shell and secured centrally to the underside of the heating jacket, and a lower cap 89 screwed onto the lower end of the tubular shell. The lower cap is connected with an inlet pipe 40 through which water or other cooling medium is admitted into the lower end of the column for use in condensing the vapors which are withdrawn from the drying chamber while the upper cap is connected with an outlet or Waste pipe 41 through which the spent water is discharged from the upper part of the co1- umn. spiral condensing coil or pipe 42 which has its upper 'end connected by a screw joint with the upper cap so as to communicate with the lower end of the vapor outlet conduit 3G while the lower end of the coil is provided with a straight downwardly projecting portion 43 which passes downwardly through a stuling box 44 in the lower -cap 'of the condensing column.

As the vapors pass downwardly from the drying chamber through the condensing coil, the same are condensed by reason of the water of lower temperature in the column surrounding the condensing coil. So much of the vapor as is condensed drips from the lower end of the condensing coil into a condensation receiving chamber 45 into the upper part of which the lower end of the con- (lensing coil projects. This receiving chamber or receiver is formed within a base or pedestal 46 which is secured at its upper end to the lower cap of the column and is adapted to rest with its underside upon the ground or floor so as to form a stand for supporting the condenser and drier at the proper height from the floor.

At a point above the bottom of the condensation receiver, the same is provided with an outlet nipple 47 which is adapted to be connected with an exhausting device of any suitable character for forcibly drawing the vapors from theV drying chamber through the condenser coil and out of the receiver and produce a vacuum in these spaces. Means are provided for permitting the Working of the condenser to be observed from the exterior. These means preferably consist of two glass window panes 48 arranged in openings on opposite sides of the receiving chamber in line with the lower end of the condenser coil, each of these panes bearing with its inner s-ide against an outwardly facing shoulder 49 formed within the bore of the respective opening and being held in place by means of a clamping ring 50 having an external screw thread engaging with the threaded bore of the respective opening and bearing against lthe outer side of said pane. By looking across the receiving chamber. from one observation window thereof to the other, the drops of condensation falling off the lower end of the condensing coil may be observed.

The stuffing box between the water column and the condensation receiver through which the lower end of the condenser coil passes prevents the cooling water leaking from the column into the receiver, thereby lfVithin the column is arranged a insuring gathering in the latter only such 'materials as have been evaporated and ,con-

densed. When the receiver has received all of the condensation of the vapors of the material being tested, or when the condensation accumulates in the receiver so as to reach up to the windows orl glasses, the same may be withdrawn by means of an outlet valve or cock 51 connected with the receiver at the bottom thereof.

Inasmuch as this drier and condenser rests directly upon the ground lor floor, the same requires no separate'support for this purpose, and owing to the fact.that the condenser is arranged underneath the drier, the construction as a whole is not only very simple and compact but is also very neat in appearance and convenient in use.

drying chamber, an inlet through which the material .to be dried is placed in the chamber and an outlet for the vapors, a door for closing said inlet, and fastening means which engage said door and hold the same shut under normal pressure in the chamber but which automatically release the` door when a vacuum is created in the chamber, said fastening means comprising shoulders or lugs arranged on one of said members, and hooks pivoted on the. other member and adapted to engage with said shoulders orl lugs.

3.' A drier comprising a shell, having a drying chamber, an inlet through which the material to be dried is placed in the chamber and an outlet for the vapors, a door for closlng said inlet, and fastening means which engage said door and hold the same shut under normal pressure in the chamber but which automatically release the door when a vacuum is created in the chamber, said fastening means-comprising a pair of hooks pivoted on opposite sides-of the shell and provided at their free ends with upwardly projecting bills which are adapted to engage with lugs orvshoulders on opposite sides of the door.

4. A drier comprising avshell containing a 4` drying chamber, an outlet for the vapors and an inlet for the introduction of the material to be` dried into the chamber, said inlet having an inclined or beveled face which recedes from its lower part toward its upper part, and a door adaptedv to engage said face for closing saidinlet and pivotally connected at. its lower end With the corresponding part of said shell.

to the shell, and a packing mounted on the door and engaging said face of the shell.

6. A drier comprising a shell containing a drying chamber, an outlet for the vapors and an inlet for the introduction of the material to be dried into the chamber, said inlet having an inclined or beveled face which recedes from its lower part toward its upper part, a

door adapted to engage said face for closing said inlet and pivotallyjconnected at its lower end with the corresponding part of said shell and provided with transparent windows.

7. vA drier comprising a shell containing a drying chamber, a vapor outlet for said chamber arranged at the rea-r end thereof and an inlet at the front end thereof through which the .material to be dried is introduced into the chamber, a door for closing said inlet, and a heating jacket arranged at the rear, top and bottom of said lshell but disconnected from said drying chamber and adapted to receive a heating medium.

' 8. A drier comprising a shell containing a drying chamber, a vaporoutlet for said chamber arranged at the rear end thereof and an inlet at the front endI thereof through which the material to be dried is introduced into the chamber, a door'for closing said inlet, and a' heating jacket arranged outside of the shell but disconnected from said drying chamber and having an inlet for the live heating medium, an outlet for the spent heating medium, and battles arrangedbetween said inlet and out of the jacket and forming a circuitous passage for said heating medium.

9. A drier comprising a shell containing a drying chamber, a vapor outlet for said chamber arranged at the lrear end thereof and an inlet at the front end thereof and the top of the shell and stopping short of the front ends of the upper jacket wall and shell, a rear section arranged centrally and vertically between the rear walls of the shell and the jacket, and a lower section extending centrally forward from the Irear jacket wall and between the lower jacket wall and the bottom of said shell, an inlet for the live heating medium and an outlet for the spent heating medium communicating with the diagonally opposite parts of said jacket at the rear thereof.

10. A drier comprising a shell containing a drying chamber which has a top, bottom, side walls and a rear wall, an inlet at its front end through which the material to be dried is introduced into the chamber, an outlet conduit for the vapors extending from the rear end of the chamber downwardly to the bottom thereof and a heating jacket surrounding the drying chamber but disconnected therefrom.

11. A drier comprising a shell containing a drying chamber which has a top, bottom, side walls and a rear wall, an inlet at its front end through which the material to be dried is introduced into the chamber', and an outlet conduit for the vapors extending from the rear end of the chamber downwardly and forwardly to the central part of the bottom thereof.

l2. A drier comprising a shell containing a drying chamber having an inlet at its front end through which the material to be dried is introduced into the drying chamber, a door for closing said inlet, a heating jacket arranged adjacent to the top, bottom and rear of the chamber and having an inlet for the live heatin medium and an outlet for the spent heating medium, a partition arranged centrally in said jacket and terminating at opposite ends short of the front ends of the top and bottom of the drying chamber and jacket, and an outlet passage for the vapors arranged in said partition and extending from the upper rear part of the drying chamber to the central ower part of the jacket.

13. The combination of a shell containing a drying chamber and a vapor conduit leading from the chamber, a hollow column which supports said shell and is provided with an inlet and an outlet for a cooling medium, a condensation receiver which supports said column and is provided at its bottom with a condensation outlet and adapted to be connected above said outlet with an exhausting device, and an upright condenser coil arranged in said column and having its upper end connected with said vapor conduit while its lower end opens into the upper part o1 said receiver.

14. The combination of a shell containing a drying chamber and a vapor conduit leading from the chamber, a hollow column which supports said Shell and is provided with an inlet and an outlet for a cooling medium, a condensation receiver which supports said column and is provided at its bottom with a condensation outlet and adapted to be connected above said outlet with an exhausting device, a stuffing box arranged between the lower end of the column and the top of the receiver, and an upright condenser coil arranged in said column and connected at its upper end with said vapor conduit while its lower end passes through said stuffing box into the upper part of said receiver.

15. The combination of a shell containing a drying chamber and a vapor conduit leading from the chamber, a hollow column which supports said shell and is provided with an inlet and an outlet for a cooling medium, a condensation receiver which supports said column and is provided at its bottom with a condensation outlet and adapted to be connected above said outlet with an exhausting device, an upright condenser coil arranged in said column and having its upper end connected with said vapor conduit while its lower end opens into the upper part of said receiver, and windows arranged 011 opposite sides of said receiver in line with the lower end of said coil.

Witness my hand this 2nd day of July, 1909. v

OLIVER S. SLEEPER.

Witnesses: V

E. M. GRAHAM, RICHARD SOMMER. 

